The present invention relates to a tool to stabilize a section of fiber optic cable and, more particularly, to a tool to stabilize a section of slack fiber cable exposed at an end of a duct as repairs or splicing operations are performed on the exposed cable.
Current communication networks include thousands of miles of fiber optic cable, where each cable may include as few as 24 or as many as 800 separate optical fibers. At times, these cables can be damaged or cut through, such as during excavations at the cable site. Lightning strikes and other environmental-related conditions have also been found to damage cables. It often becomes necessary, therefore, to expose damaged sections of cable and repair the damaged fibers as quickly as possible. Sometimes the damage is severe and all of the fibers in the cable are damaged, and yet at other times only a few of the fibers are damaged. When all of the fibers are damaged, restoration is quite simplexe2x80x94the damaged section is located and the fibers are spliced back together. However, when only a few of the fibers are damaged, only these fibers need to be spliced back together, requiring the non-damaged fibers to be protected during the repair process. In most cases, the damage location will be spanned with a restoration cable during the repair process, requiring the cable to stabilized to avoid further damage.
To gain access to a fiber cable in the damaged area, the cable duct system must be exposed and cut open to reveal the cable. After the duct is uncovered and the cable is exposed, the cable sheath is removed from around the cable to allow for access to the individual fibers. During this process, access to the fibers is gained by placing wire mesh grips around the fiber cable and a come-along device is used to place tension on the cable so as to prevent the cable from being pulled into two pieces while the splicing operation is being performed. This process has been found to be quite cumbersome, with the grips and the come-along device cluttering the work area in the splice location.
Thus, a need remains in the prior art for a device that provides a stabilized work area during a fiber splice, while also protecting the fiber cable during the restoration process.
The need remaining in the prior art is addressed by the present invention, which relates to a tool to stabilize a section of fiber optic cable and, more particularly, to a tool to stabilize a section of slack fiber cable exposed at an end of a duct as repairs or splicing operations are performed on the exposed cable.
The cable stabilization device of the present invention comprises a split housing component that fits over the end of the duct and includes setscrews to secure the housing to the duct. A pair of roller wheels are disposed at one end of the housing and are used to grip the fiber cable exiting the duct and hold the cable in place during the restoration process. In one embodiment, a ratcheting mechanism is used is lock the wheels into the cable. The cable stabilization device further comprises a split inner sleeve, attached to the housing, where the sleeve extends into the duct to support an end portion of the fiber cable during the restoration process.
In a preferred embodiment, the housing and sleeve comprise a relatively strong plastic material, such as polyethylene, that will be able to support both the duct and cable components during the restoration process.
Other and further embodiments of the present invention will become apparent during the course of the following discussion and by reference to the accompanying drawings.